Xena: Warrior Princess (TV Series) The Titans (1995) User Reviews

A simple funny-ish episode with some actually Greek mythology in it with the Titans.

[reb-warrior · 7/10 · 15 March 2021]

Xena is after a thug. Gabrielle accidentally awakens three Titans and fools them into thinking she's a Goddess. Gabrielle thinks Xena is treating her like a kid.

There were about 30 people or so in the cave trying to awaken the Titans and get them to fix things in their village. I wonder if it ever occurred to them that they all could have gone to fix things in the village as a group, one project at a time? Lol. Are they lazy or what? Basically, they wanted to treat the Titans as slaves.

Gabs and Phyleus' conversations were so ott ingratiating towards each other that at one point Hessiod said: "You're both a couple of idiots if you ask me." Well, I laughed. Look, he's a thug, and I don't agree with him, but I understood his sentiment at that moment. They were both very annoying.

Gabrielle gets mad at Xena for treating her like a kid. This is ironic given that's sort of how Gabrielle behaved when she took off on her own to stop the Titans, thereby endangering the plan Xena and the villagers already had set. Gabrielle goes a little "Scheherazade," as she starts telling stories in order to delay awakening all the Titans. As Xena states: "On the bright side if anyone can stall, it's Gabrielle."

I enjoyed Xena's swagger after they trapped Hyperion's hand and she lazily laid her sword on her shoulder as she approached him for the kill. Also, enjoyed right before that when she taunted him as bait, and how she laughed. Lol.

Xena and Gabrielle work things out in the end as Xena says: "Look, the point is, we're friends. And, we shouldn't let things like that come between us."

I thought Gabs was a bit immature-ish in this episode, regarding her actions after feeling Xena was treating her like a kid, but also when it came to her treatment of the Titans. Basically tricking them and using them as slaves. I mean the tricking them part is funny in a lot of ways, but still, they are sentient beings, and at least two of them seemed decent enough, and it was surprising that Gabs couldn't see that she wasn't being very fair to them. Then again, this is a Xena-lite episode and everything was glossed over, plus they made Theia complicit in trapping Gabrielle and her wanting to awake all the Titans as well. Tho, that doesn't happen until later in the episode after Gabs had already treated them this way.

A simple funny-ish episode with some actual Greek mythology in it with the Titans. 7/10.

Salute to Xena - A 25th Anniversary Review

[skullface2020 · 8/10 · 16 March 2020]

Gabrielle displays some amazing talents as well as courage when a situation involving the Titans gets out of hand. Xena's leadership helps an innocent community fend off a threat from these monstrous beings.

SYNOPSIS

As Xena comes to the defense of innocent travelers under attack by a group of rouges, Gabrielle wanders into a cave when a congregation listens as a young woman recites from a scroll. Gabrielle notices that the woman's timing is not accurate, and takes the liberty to show her how it's done. Suddenly out of the cave's stone walls emerge three Titans! These are Crius, Hyperion and Theia who were cast in stone by the Gods, and Gabrielle's excellent singing brought them back to life. To reward her for freeing them, Crius as the most senior Titan of the lot informs Gabrielle that her wish is their command.

Nearby Xena fights of numerous thieves and killers in a tavern when suddenly the roof is ripped of by the giant Titans who have come to her defense. After they disperse these evil criminals, The Titans are put to work conducting menial tasks for the innocent villagers on Gabrielle's orders. It's about at this point that Hyperion, the youngest among the Titans, begins to express his doubts that Gabrielle is a Goddess. The other Titans tell him to forget about his doubts, and to continue in the service of their young new master. While enjoying her new found popularity in the village, Gabrielle strikes up a friendship with a young man named Phyleus whose an idealist-type like herself.

Hyperion loses his cool and attacks the village which confirms his suspicion that Gabrielle is not a goddess. The villagers find shelter in a temple that is also considered sacred by the Titans, but any humans outside of the temple grounds are in grave danger. Hyperion's violence brings him into direct confrontation with Crius who believes that the three Titans should support Gabrielle and help her human friends. After a fight, Crius receive a deadly strike to the chest from the enraged Hyperion. Now Hyperion seeks to convince Theia that they should scheme to un-petrify the other Titans stuck in stone.

Against Xena's advice, Gabrielle sneaks off to the cave where the Titans originated. She believes that she can turn them back into stone by reading some more material from the scrolls that she encountered earlier on. However, upon arrival in the cave she is suddenly trapped in a cage by Hyperion! Now he forces her to read the scroll that will revive all the other Titans, but she is unsuccessful. It turns out that in order for her reading to work, it must be made by a virgin, and Gabrielle informs them that this term no longer applies to her. As Hyperion's violence ensues, Xena shows up to defend her friend and the other innocent humans. However, Gabrielle had tricked the Titans and she had lied about no longer being a virgin. The Titans are set back into stone once she reads the passage from the sacred scroll.

NOTES

Gabrielle got a little carried away on her power trip bossing the Titans around, but her intentions were good and benevolent to the other innocent humans. Phyleus was a nice kid, but he wasn't special enough to by anything more than a friend to Gabrielle. Xena explains that she never lost faith in her friend since she knew Gabrielle's heart was in the right place.

Enter: the Titans

The Giants vs the Virgin Goddess

[Joxerlives · 7/10 · 8 May 2021]

The Good; some great interplay between Gabby and Xena and her planning is truly inspirational.

The Bad; Nothing really but it's all a little lacklustre, this, like many of the eps of the first season feels like a script for Hercules they just converted for the girls.

Best lines-Head Titan; "We obey virgin goddess".

Gabby; "You know you don't have to call me that all the time, it's kinda personal".

Xena cliches; Xena and Gabby in bondage

The pinch; 2 Village threatened by warlord; 2 Xena wounded; 1 Xena doppelganger; 1 Traitorous aide; 1 Fire-breathing; 2, Hot tub; 2, Xena in bondage 2, Gabby in bondage 2.

Notches on the headpost; no and we realise that Gabby doesn't have any whatsoever.

Calling Captain Subtext; check out the little look of jealousy Xena gives when she thinks that Gabby may have slept with the head villager?

Twisted history; the Titans were the forefathers of the gods whom they eventually overthrew, they seem much larger than the Olympians (Poseidon aside) but otherwise to lack any powers beyond their size?

Bodycount; 1 Titan, 1 bandit and his aide.

Xena; 16

Notes; Gabby is left in charge of Argo (still unnamed here) for the first time and she and Xena fall out over it "She has no respect for me". Gabby is a virgin although you wonder is that physically or in the Bill Clinton sense?

7/10.

The Battling Bard - Mash Up Of The Titans

[bennetts-16344 · 8/10 · 8 April 2019]

This episode is probably the most Gabrielle centric story line up to this point and as such, involves inadvertent choas and hilarity.

The episode begins with Xena dishing out bruises to a group of wandering thugs. When she whistles for her horse, Argo is not battle ready which she blames Gabrielle for. Having been ticked off, Gabrielle wanders off and stumbles across a cave where a group of villagers dressed as Da Vinci Code extras are listening to a young girl trying to recite the contents of a scroll. As we know, given any chance to show off and impress, Gabrielle 1.0 will take it. Without even asking what the recitation is for, Gabrielle reads aloud with gusto, the walls shake and three entombed Titans break through their stone prison (Crius, Hyperion and Theia). When the first of these to speak asks who was responsible for freeing them, the young man of the group points to Gabrielle and loudly states " This virgin" as only a chaste female could have performed the ritual. It's very clear from her face that this is profile information Gabrielle wouldn't have volunteered but still in a state of shock she listens as the Titan called Crius tells her that they are hers to command and they all take the knee (although one of them, Hyperion, reluctantly). It takes Gabrielle all of a nano second to calculate that this could be to her advantage.

Fast forward to Xena who had chased her quarry to the local inn only to then be outnumbered. She receives unexpected back up when the roof is ripped off and Crius peers in. The rogues scatter and Xena is introduced to the Titans, "We honour all friends of the virgin Goddess" Crius responds, reminiscent of the virgin Connie Swail gag in Dragnet (1987). Gabrielle nips this in the bud quickly " You know, I'd rather you didn't tell everyone I was a virgin, it's kinda personal, you know what I mean?".

Gabrielle goes on to set them menial jobs to help the villagers which Hyperion in particular resents. Gabrielle becomes a local celebrity as a result. Her biggest fan is Phyleus, an idealistic, impulsive and naive young man (basically a male version of Gabrielle but really insipid and annoying). She plans to take the Titans around the world to right all wrongs.

Things unravel quickly when Hyperion's suspicions that Gabrielle isn't really a Goddess are realised and he turns on the puny humans. The whole village ends up sheltering in a nearby temple. Unfortunately, some of the local children are out for a walk and captured by Hyperion who plans to kill them. Crius vehemently disagrees, leading to the two fighting whilst Xena rescues the children. Crius is attacked with either a stalagmite or a stalagtite, I can't remember which, but probably an irrelevance once it's been plunged through your chest wall. RIP Crius.

Xena is briefly betrayed by one of the rogues and some of the villagers which doesn't end well for them. Gabrielle and Phyleus come up with a plan to read another scroll that will turn Hyperion and Theia back into stone. Xena deems the plan too risky though and the pair go off in a huff. In the morning Xena finds the pair lying together. The inference being they slept together over night but we all know that Gabrielle isn't that kind of girl.

Gabrielle still hasn't forgiven Xena for dismissing her plan and runs off impetiously to carry it out. Suprise, suprise, she's captured and the two surviving Titans try to get her to recite the incantation which will release thousands of other Titans. Someone really needs to wall up the entrance to the cave when this is all over. Gabrielle stalls for time and then reads the scroll but to no affect. She explains that she no longer has the power to use the scrolls because she's no longer a virgin. This enrages Hyperion who calls her a harlot. As far as sexual slurs go, Gabrielle can consider herself as getting off quite lightly. Meanwhile, Xena puts her plan into action which involves immobilising Hyperion with a restraining device for his wrist. This is short lived and the two have to turn to Gabrielle's original plan. This is achieved as she lied about her night together with Phyleus and her virtue is intact. The Titans are returned to their stone form.

Gabrielle and Phyleus say an emotional goodbye. "you were almost my first" she whispers. " and you mine" he replies. We don't know what she meant by that but if it was anything more than second base then frankly it was an exercise in poor judgement. He tries to follow up with a kiss but she already appears to be having feelings of regret and pours cold water on it.

Xena and Gabrielle chat and Xena probably pays Gabrielle her first compliment of the series.

This is a fun episode that builds on Xena and Gabrielle's friendship. It has an old school Harryhausen feel to it (as does the next episode) which fans of those films will enjoy.

Memorable Scene: Gabrielle awakening the Titans.

Quote: Xena: "For your information I could never hate you, your heart's always in the right place". Gabrielle: Even when I try to rule the world with Titans?" Xena: " Everyone makes mistakes"

Subtext Watch: Xena's expression when she sees the two of them lying together.

The Titans

[Prismark10 · 5/10 · 9 August 2018]

Gabrielle is treated like a goddess as her recital of an ancient chant awakens the three Titans.

As the liberator of the Titans, Gabrielle gets the Titans who are giant beings to help the villagers who were trying to awaken them.

However one of the Titan regards humans as puny and does not wish to take orders from Gabrielle.

It is left to Xena to save Gabrielle and turn the Titans back to stone.

Gabrielle gets grandeur of world domination in this episode as she hopes to take the Titans on a world tour to fix wrongs and bring world peace. It is pretty obvious how the story will turn out and it drags along slowly, like a lumbering giant.